Executive Agency for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (EASME) CALL FOR PROPOSALS

Transcription

1 Ref. Ares(2018) /05/2018 EUROPEAN COMMISSION Executive Agency for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (EASME) CALL FOR PROPOSALS Supporting the Development and Promotion of Transnational Thematic Tourism Products: Exploiting Synergies between Tourism and Cultural and Creative Industries GRO/SME/18/C/064 COS-TOURSYN COSME Work Programme 2018

2 Table of Contents 1. INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND Introduction Policy Context OBJECTIVES ACTIVITIES OUTPUTS TIMETABLE BUDGET AVAILABLE AND FUNDING OF PROJECTS ADMISSIBILITY REQUIREMENTS ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA Eligible applicants Eligible consortia Implementation period EXCLUSION CRITERIA Exclusion Remedial measures Rejection from the call for proposals Supporting documents SELECTION CRITERIA Financial capacity Operational capacity AWARD CRITERIA LEGAL COMMITMENTS ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW PROCEDURES FINANCIAL PROVISIONS General principles Funding forms Payment arrangements: Pre-financing guarantee

3 13. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS: PUBLICITY By the beneficiaries By EASME DATA PROTECTION PROCEDURE FOR THE SUBMISSION OF PROPOSALS ANNEXES:

4 1. INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND 1.1. Introduction Small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) play a crucial role in reaching the objectives of the Europe 2020 Strategy 1. Whereas they are considered as crucial engines for growth and job creation, their competitiveness is affected by a limited exploitation of international opportunities and innovation prospects in the Single Market and beyond. In this context, the Programme for the competitiveness of enterprises and small and medium-sized enterprises ( ) 2, hereinafter referred to as COSME, aims to promote growth and to strengthen the competitiveness and sustainability of enterprises in the European Union. The Executive Agency for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises 3 (hereinafter referred to as "EASME" or the "Agency") is entrusted by the European Commission with the implementation, inter alia, of parts of the COSME programme. In this respect, this call for proposals, managed by EASME, implements parts of the COSME Work Programme 2018, as adopted on 6 November Policy Context General policy context This call for proposals is based on Article 25 of the COSME Regulation. It aims at supporting the development and promotion of transnational thematic tourism products exploiting synergies between tourism and cultural and creative industries (CCIs). Tourism is an important economic sector in the European Union, contributing 10.2% to EU GDP and employing more than 26 million people. The Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union ("TFEU") outlines the Union's competences in this field (Title XXII Tourism, Art. 195), specifying that EU measures to support, coordinate or supplement the actions of the Member States shall be especially aimed at: a) encouraging the creation of a favourable environment for the development of undertakings in this sector; b) promoting cooperation between the Member States, particularly by the exchange of good practices. In line with the priorities of the Commission, the actions proposed under COSME 2018 work programme contribute to strengthening the competitiveness of the EU tourism sector and increase its contribution to economic growth and jobs in the EU. The actions under COSME will particularly aim, on the one side, at improving the business environment for tourism enterprises, through enhanced socio-economic and market intelligence and exchange of best practices, and on the other side, at diversifying and increasing the visibility of Europe's transnational tourism offer. The actions will be implemented in close cooperation with the industry and the Member States' authorities at all levels, in line with the subsidiarity and proportionality principles. 1 COM (2010)2020 final of 3 March 2010 Europe A strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. 2 Regulation (EU) No 1287/2013 of 11 December 2013 (Official Journal of the European Union L 347/33 of ). 3 EASME was set up by Commission Implementing Decision 2013/771/EU of 17 December 2013 establishing the Executive Agency for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises and repealing Decisions 2004/20/EC and 2007/372/EC (Official Journal of the European Union L 341/73 of ). 4 Commission Implementing Decision C(2017) 7293 of concerning the adoption of the work programme for 2018 and the financing decision for the implementation of the Programme for the Competitiveness of Enterprises and small and medium-sized enterprises. 4

5 For this particular call for proposals, the following operational objective of the COSME 2018 work programme is relevant: diversifying and increasing the visibility of Europe's transnational tourism offer. Under this objective, the Commission will co-fund projects which support the promotion and development of transnational thematic tourism products. The aim is to support partnerships, including destinations and SMEs, developing and promoting transnational tourism products through Cultural and Creative Industries (CCIs) Specific policy context Whilst recognising the important role Member States play in developing and implementing strategies for tourism at national and regional level, the Union should help the development and promotion of transnational tourism products which embody common European shared values and cultural diversity and contribute to promoting Europe as a "unique tourism destination". Therefore the European Commission encourages the development of tourism products on a transnational and European scale. The Commission has already co-financed numerous transnational actions thereby enhancing the visibility of diverse thematic tourism products (e.g. cycle or hiking routes crossing several countries; pan-european cultural routes etc.) 5. With this Call, the Commission wishes to better exploit synergies between tourism and cultural and creative industries through concrete actions which support SMEs in these industry sectors. Cultural and Creative Industries (CCIs) 6 are knowledge and innovation-intensive industries. They are one of the most vibrant sectors of the EU economy: they employ over 12 million people and generate a turnover of approximately 1,500 billion 7. At the crossroads between arts, business and technology, they are in a strategic position to trigger innovation spill-overs and add value to other sectors. Specific findings show that industries with stronger links to the creative industries have stronger innovation performance 8. CCIs constantly innovate their products, services and business models and thanks to that can contribute to promoting Europe and its tourism offer in a more effective and creative way by enhancing visitor's experience. Taking the above into account, this call for proposals intends to co-fund projects which put a particular focus on transnational cooperation between tourism and CCIs-related SMEs to develop and promote innovative yet tangible tourism offers. Such tourism offers need to capitalise on the creative potential of CCIs to develop innovative services and products and/or use cultural and creative content to enhance existing or develop new tourism experiences Covering in particular architecture, archives and libraries, artistic crafts, audio-visual (including film, television, video games and multimedia), cultural heritage, design (including fashion design), festivals, music, performing and visual arts, publishing and radio (Source: COM (2012) 537 Promoting cultural and creative sectors for growth and jobs in the EU) Firms that spend double the average amount on creative products 6% compared with 3% of their output are 25% more likely to introduce product innovations. Also firms where sales to the creative sectors are important are more likely to introduce new products and increase their product range. (Source: "Creating Innovation. Do the creative industries support innovation in the wider economy?" NESTA Research report, 2018) 5

6 2. OBJECTIVES ACTIVITIES OUTPUTS 2.1. General and specific objectives This action seeks to enhance the competitiveness of European tourism and promote the image of Europe as a global tourist destination of excellence. The Commission wishes to support projects which are innovative in their approach, propose sustainable solutions and are based on the close cooperation with and involvement of tourism and CCIs-related SMEs and professionals. Within the general and specific context explained above, the general objective of the action is to explore the spill-over effects of culture and creativity on tourism products and services in terms of: revitalising tourism attractions and destinations, and diversifying transnational tourism experiences; prolonging seasonality of EU destinations and/or enhancing sustainability of tourism offers; boosting innovation across transnational tourism value chains. The specific objectives of the action: developing innovative solutions or management tools for tourism attractions or destinations through cooperation between tourism and CCI SMEs; exploring new ways of engaging visitors, with the help of CCIs-related companies or professionals, to revitalise existing tourism products/services and/or create new ones, creating solid public-private partnerships in the area of tourism and CCIs and ensuring the exchange of knowledge and experience within the partnerships Priorities The present call for proposals seeks to support projects focusing on existing or new tourism experiences which build on the creative and innovation potential of CCIs to develop services and products. Proposals must therefore give due importance to the following priorities: a) the development of transnational thematic tourism products focusing on innovative solutions, such as but not limited to AR apps, used as interface to explore tourism attractions/destinations and develop new modes of visitor servicing, storytelling and gamification; b) the creation of trans-national cooperation networks facilitating capacity building through knowledge and innovation transfer, joint ventures, and the creation of replicable toolkits or handbooks; c) the combination of services, products and customised offers, resulting from the cooperation between tourism and CCIs SMEs, within public-private partnerships; 6

7 d) the elaboration of new niche offers targeting audiences that transcend national geographic markets. For the purpose of this call for proposal, "thematic" refers to the tourism product that is conceived and structured around a clearly identifiable theme/context (e.g. local gastronomy, sports or wellness activities, historical figures or events, archaeological sites, etc.) Eligible activities In line with the objectives, thematic context and priorities mentioned above, the present call for proposals will support the following type of activities: The mapping of tourism attractions, sites, destinations and tourism related services, that could be linked to the identified theme; The development of transnational tourism products and services, which have excellent marketing potential, are attractive and interesting for intra-european and/or long haul travellers and travel operators, and can continue after the end of the co-financing period; The creation of new technological or organisational solutions to attract and engage visitors; The implementation of medium-to-long-term joint communication/promotion and market uptake strategies; The development of creative promotional activities offering practical information and useful tools for potential tourists; The implementation of awareness raising and dissemination actions (e.g., the production of audio-visuals, communication activities, publications, websites, participation in fairs, partnerships with international media, etc.). Applicants are free to propose additional types of activities, if duly justified as fulfilling the objectives and priorities of this call for proposals. Non-eligible activities: Development/improvement of infrastructure; Promoting local tourism offers without developing the transnational dimension of the offer, and/or promoting tourism without focusing on a concrete transnational thematic tourism product General expected results (for outputs or deliverables) The project proposal shall target the following general expected results: Contribution to competitive and sustainable development, growth (increase in international tourism flows) and employment in the tourism and CCI sectors. Benefits and multiplier effects of synergies between tourism and CCIs-related activities on economy and people s wellbeing; Demonstrated contribution to the development of a transnational tourism offer and its diversification. Creation of a "critical mass" of transnational tourism-related products and services, providing ground for varied and attractive tourism offers at European level; 7

8 Better market visibility of varied and attractive European transnational tourism offers; developing comprehensive and practical information on the product for potential tourists and enhancing visitors' experience; Facilitation and consolidation of public-private partnerships and involvement of tourism and CCI related enterprises in the supply chain of transnational thematic tourism products as well as into regional development and tourism promotional strategies. The applicant is free to add other, more specific, results relevant to the project proposal. This can amongst others take the form of concrete deliverables in line with the expected results and impacts General indicators Applicants must ensure that the project outcomes and impacts are presented against all the following indicators: Number of countries participating in transnational cooperation project; Number of tourism and CCI-related SMEs involved in the development of transnational cooperation project; Increased awareness about and visibility of transnational tourism offers (measurable through a survey of key stakeholders); Increased tourism flows in the areas concerned during the project lifetime; Number of public-private partnerships created during the project lifetime. Moreover, specific outcome indicators have to be defined for each project proposal, depending on the concrete results/outcomes foreseen for the specific project General requirements Requirements for the preparation of the proposals A project proposal must: Be clear. Applicants are requested to divide the actions into work packages, having clear objectives, a clear description of the work, deliverables, milestones, and expected results measured by performance indicators. To do so, partners must fill in the template "Description of Work", provided together with this call for proposals. Be coherent. The proposal needs to clearly elaborate among others - on the following aspects: a) Shortcomings and specific needs to be addressed; b) Identification of the target group(s) and its justification/rationale; c) Logical link between identified needs, specific objectives, proposed actions and expected results; d) Complementarity of the project with other actions being carried out (if any) by the applicants. 8

9 Be supported by a concise and realistic action plan. The proposal needs to briefly elaborate among others - on the following aspects: a) Status quo (SWOT or similar) analysis of the current situation; b) Analysis of alternative solutions to address the identified needs and their costeffectiveness; c) Description of and reasons for the chosen solution as proposed in the project proposal; d) Estimation of costs and revenues and financial effectiveness, for the chosen solution in the medium term and a business plan after the EU co-financing period ends; e) The extent to which the outputs are likely to lead to clear and tangible results; f) Estimated impact of the proposed actions on target groups and on the local economies (indicators, data sources, tools and methodologies to measure short and medium-long term benefits/impact of proposed actions); g) Any evidence of transformative or spill-over effects, including the extent to which additional value is or may be created by the chosen solution's adoption more widely across Europe. Be technically and financially sustainable. The project proposal needs to identify the management structure and explain how this will enable the project to meet its goals. It has to also identify the staff to be involved and the distribution of tasks between partners and staff members. The proposals must aim at the creation of innovative and sustainable tourism products and services, which have excellent marketing potential, are attractive and interesting for travellers and operators, and can continue after the end of the project period. The project needs to develop a medium-to-long-term communication/promotion and market uptake strategy. Therefore, the project proposal shall clearly refer to how the action will be further developed after the end of the co-financing period, both technically and financially. Generate real measurable results and long-term impacts. The expected results of the project have to be clearly outlined (both short term and medium-long-terms results) and they must be quantifiable and measurable. The proposal needs to indicate how the results can be measured (i.e. which indicators and sources can be used to measure the results, also after the end of the project). The work packages need to also contain a final evaluation of results clearly demonstrating whether and how the relevant results (as well as other results specific to the proposal) have been achieved. As also elaborated upon in the Award Criteria, it will be seen as an asset of added value, positively affecting the assessment of the project proposal, if: a) the partners' consortium covers more than 6 partners and more than 5 eligible countries; 9

10 b) the proposal is innovative in its approach, proposes sustainable solutions and highlights close, effective, appropriate and tangible transnational collaboration between tourism and CCI SME`s, besides at least a public authority. 3. TIMETABLE 3.1. Planning Stages Dates a) Deadline for submitting applications 19/07/ :00 h Brussels time b) Evaluation period* August September 2018 c) Information to applicants* November December 2018 d) Signature of grant agreements* February 2019 March 2019 e) Starting date of the action* March 2019 April 2019 * indicative 4. BUDGET AVAILABLE AND FUNDING OF PROJECTS The total budget earmarked for the co-financing of projects is estimated at EUR The maximum grant per project will be EUR It is expected to fund 5 to 7 proposals. The grant is limited to a maximum reimbursement rate of 75% of eligible costs. EASME reserves the right not to distribute all the funds available. 5. ADMISSIBILITY REQUIREMENTS The following requirements must be complied with: Applications must be submitted no later than the deadline for submitting applications referred to in section 3; Applications must be submitted in writing, using the electronic system specified in section 16; Applications must be drafted in one of the EU official languages. Failure to comply with those requirements will lead to the rejection of the application. Incomplete applications may be considered inadmissible. This refers to the requested administrative data, the proposal description and requested grant amount, and any supporting documents specified in this call for proposals. 10

11 6. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA 6.1 Eligible applicants Applicants must be legal entities forming a consortium - fully or partly public or private bodies; private bodies must be properly constituted and registered under national law. - natural persons in line with the types of eligible personnel costs elaborated upon in Section 12.2 (refer particularly to the subsection "Direct Personnel Costs": A.3 and A.4) Applicants must correspond to the definition of at least one of the following target organisations active in the field of tourism, cultural and creative industry (CCIs): Public authorities and their networks or associations at European, international, national, regional and local level or organisations acting on behalf of a public authority 9 ; Training or educational institutions including universities, research centres; Chambers of commerce and industry, chambers of handicrafts or similar bodies and their umbrella Associations; Destination management organisations and their networks/associations; Travel Agents and Tour Operators and their umbrella associations; Not-for profit/non-governmental organisations, civil society organisations, foundations, think-tanks, umbrella associations, networks or federations of public or private bodies, whose core activity falls under tourism, CCIs; International, European and national organisations/federations/associations active in tourism and CCIs, including those operating in partnership across the borders of a number of countries with a proven cross-border outreach; Micro, Small and Medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) active in the tourism and CCIs sectors; National, regional, local tourism organisations, public and private agencies related to tourism, cultural heritage promotion or regional development; Only applications from legal entities established in the following countries are eligible: EU Member States; 9 For the purpose of this call for proposals, examples of eligible public authorities at national, regional and local level include but are not limited to: ministries, regions, provinces, counties, voivodeships, oblasts, cantons, districts, departments, prefectures, municipalities, city/local councils and communes. Moreover, a network or association of regional or local public authorities will be accepted under this category of partners under the conditions that : (i) it is formally established as a network or association and (ii) at least one member of the association/network is a regional or local public authority (as mentioned above). A body/organisation such as a regional or national development agency acting on behalf (or with delegated powers) of a national, regional or local public authority will also be considered eligible to fulfil this criterion provided that the delegation of powers or empowering is established by an official document submitted with the application. A translation into English must also be provided, if the original is in a different language. Other public authorities will also be considered, yet the onus is on the applicant to demonstrate the authority`s eligibility and relevance in the context of this Call for proposals. 11

12 countries participating in the COSME programme pursuant to Article 6 of the COSME Regulation 10. For British applicants: Please be aware that eligibility criteria must be complied with for the entire duration of the grant. If the United Kingdom withdraws from the EU during the grant period without concluding an agreement with the EU ensuring in particular that British applicants continue to be eligible, you will cease to receive EU funding (while continuing, where possible, to participate) or be required to leave the project on the basis of Article (b) of the grant agreement. 6.2 Eligible consortia The consortium must gather a minimum of 6 and a maximum of 8 members/partners - different legal entities - covering at least 5 eligible countries - as listed under section 6.1.3; The consortium must be composed of at least: a. four SMEs 11 Small and Medium Sized enterprises: 2 active in the tourism and 2 in the CCIs sector 12 ; and b. one national or regional or local public authority Linked third parties, i.e. legal entities having a legal or capital link with applicants, which is neither limited to the action nor established for the sole purpose of its implementation, may take part in the action as applicants (one of the 6-8 members/partners 14 ) in order to declare eligible costs. 10 The following groups of countries are eligible for participation in COSME according to Article 6 COSME Regulation: a. European Free Trade Association (EFTA) countries which are members of the European Economic Area (EEA), in accordance with the conditions laid down in the EEA Agreement, and other European countries when agreements and procedures so allow; b. acceding countries, candidate countries and potential candidates in accordance with the general principles and general terms and conditions for the participation of those countries in the Union's programmes established in the respective Framework Agreements and Association Council Decisions, or similar arrangements; c. countries falling within the scope of the European neighbourhood policies, when agreements and procedures so allow and in accordance with the general principles and general terms and conditions for the participation of those countries in the Union's programmes established in the respective Framework Agreements, Protocols to Association Agreements and Association Council Decisions. The updated list of eligible third countries is available on the following webpage: Proposals from applicants in Article 6 countries may be selected provided that, on the date of award, agreements have been signed setting out the arrangements for the participation of those countries in the programme. 11 SME is defined as a company engaged in economic activities and having less than 250 employees, with a turnover of less than EUR 50 million or a balance sheet total of less than EUR 43 million ( 12 Refer also to Footnote 6 13 Refer also to Footnote 9 14 Refer also to Section

13 6.3 Supporting documents: Applicants must demonstrate that they fully respect the eligibility criteria set out in this call for proposals. Adequate supporting documents have to be provided with the application. Moreover, the proposal has to clearly indicate the name of the applicants fulfilling the above-mentioned eligibility criteria. 6.4 Implementation period The duration of projects must be between months. Applications for projects scheduled to run for a shorter or longer period than that specified in this call for proposals will not be accepted. 6.5 Kick-off meeting The applicant must foresee, in the budget proposal of the project, the participation of maximum two representatives of the project s consortium (one representative of the coordinator organisation and another partner) at the kick-off meeting in Brussels, organised by EASME, at the beginning of the implementation period. 7. EXCLUSION CRITERIA 7.1. Exclusion The authorising officer shall exclude an applicant from participating in call for proposals procedures where: (a) the applicant is bankrupt, subject to insolvency or winding-up procedures, where its assets are being administered by a liquidator or by a court, where it is in an arrangement with creditors, where its business activities are suspended, or where it is in any analogous situation arising from a similar procedure provided for under national laws or regulations; (b) it has been established by a final judgment or a final administrative decision that the applicant is in breach of its obligations relating to the payment of taxes or social security contributions in accordance with the law of the country in which it is established, with those of the country in which the authorising officer is located or those of the country of the performance of the contract; (c) it has been established by a final judgment or a final administrative decision that the applicant is guilty of grave professional misconduct by having violated applicable laws or regulations or ethical standards of the profession to which the applicant belongs, or by having engaged in any wrongful conduct which has an impact on its professional credibility where such conduct denotes wrongful intent or gross negligence, including, in particular, any of the following: (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) fraudulently or negligently misrepresenting information required for the verification of the absence of grounds for exclusion or the fulfilment of selection criteria or in the performance of a contract, a grant agreement or a grant decision; entering into agreement with other applicants with the aim of distorting competition; violating intellectual property rights; attempting to influence the decision-making process of the Agency during the award procedure; 13

14 (v) attempting to obtain confidential information that may confer upon it undue advantages in the award procedure; (d) it has been established by a final judgment that the applicant is guilty of any of the following: (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) fraud, within the meaning of Article 1 of the Convention on the protection of the European Communities' financial interests, drawn up by the Council Act of 26 July 1995; corruption, as defined in Article 3 of the Convention on the fight against corruption involving officials of the European Communities or officials of Member States of the European Union, drawn up by the Council Act of 26 May 1997, and in Article 2(1) of Council Framework Decision 2003/568/JHA, as well as corruption as defined in the law of the country where the contracting authority is located, the country in which the applicant is established or the country of the performance of the contract; participation in a criminal organisation, as defined in Article 2 of Council Framework Decision 2008/841/JHA; money laundering or terrorist financing, as defined in Article 1 of Directive 2005/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council; (v) terrorist-related offences or offences linked to terrorist activities, as defined in Articles 1 and 3 of Council Framework Decision 2002/475/JHA, respectively, or inciting, aiding, abetting or attempting to commit such offences, as referred to in Article 4 of that Decision; (vi) child labour or other forms of trafficking in human beings as defined in Article 2 of Directive 2011/36/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council; (e) the applicant has shown significant deficiencies in complying with main obligations in the performance of a contract, a grant agreement or a grant decision financed by the Union's budget, which has led to its early termination or to the application of liquidated damages or other contractual penalties, or which has been discovered following checks, audits or investigations by an authorising officer, OLAF or the Court of Auditors; (f) it has been established by a final judgment or final administrative decision that the applicant has committed an irregularity within the meaning of Article 1(2) of Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2988/95. (g) for the situations of grave professional misconduct, fraud, corruption, other criminal offences, significant deficiencies in the performance of the contract or irregularity, the applicant is subject to: (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) (v) facts established in the context of audits or investigations carried out by the Court of Auditors, OLAF or internal audit, or any other check, audit or control performed under the responsibility of an authorising officer of an EU institution, of a European office or of an EU agency or body; non-final administrative decisions which may include disciplinary measures taken by the competent supervisory body responsible for the verification of the application of standards of professional ethics; decisions of the ECB, the EIB, the European Investment Fund or international organisations; decisions of the Commission relating to the infringement of the Union's competition rules or of a national competent authority relating to the infringement of Union or national competition law. decisions of exclusion by an authorising officer of an EU institution, of a European office or of an EU agency or body. 14

15 7.2. Remedial measures If an applicant declares one of the situations of exclusion listed above (see section 7.4), it needs to indicate the measures it has taken to remedy the exclusion situation, thus demonstrating its reliability. This may include e.g. technical, organisational and personnel measures to prevent further occurrence, compensation of damage or payment of fines. The relevant documentary evidence which illustrates the remedial measures taken must be provided in annex to the declaration. This does not apply for situations referred in point (d) of section Rejection from the call for proposals The authorising officer shall not award a grant to an applicant who: a. is in an exclusion situation established in accordance with section 7.1; b. has misrepresented the information required as a condition for participating in the procedure or has failed to supply that information; c. was previously involved in the preparation of calls for proposal documents where this entails a distortion of competition that cannot be remedied otherwise. The same exclusion criteria apply to linked third parties. Administrative and financial penalties may be imposed on applicants, or linked third parties where applicable, who are guilty of misrepresentation Supporting documents Applicants must provide a declaration on their honour certifying that they are not in one of the situations referred to in Articles 106(1) and 107 FR, by filling in the relevant form attached to the application form accompanying this call for proposals. 8. SELECTION CRITERIA 8.1 Financial capacity Applicants must have stable and sufficient sources of funding to maintain their activity throughout the period during which the action is being carried out or the year for which the grant is awarded and to participate in its funding. The applicants' financial capacity will be assessed on the basis of the following supporting documents: a) Low value grants ( EUR ): - a declaration on their honour. b) Grants EUR : - a declaration on their honour and, EITHER the profit and loss account, the balance sheet for the last financial year for which the accounts were closed; for newly created entities, the business plan might replace the above documents. 15

16 OR the table provided for in the application form, filled in with the relevant statutory accounting figures, in order to calculate the ratios as detailed in the form. c) Grants for an action EUR , in addition: - an audit report produced by an approved external auditor certifying the accounts for the last financial year available. In the event of an application grouping several applicants (consortium), the above thresholds apply to each applicant. The above-listed documents will have to be provided at later stage, via the electronic submission tool and only upon request of EASME. On the basis of the documents submitted, if the authorising officer considers that financial capacity is not satisfactory, he may: request further information; propose a grant agreement without pre-financing; propose a grant agreement with a pre-financing paid in instalments; propose a grant agreement with a pre-financing covered by a bank guarantee (see section 12.4 below); where applicable, require the joint and several financial liability of all the co-beneficiaries; reject the application. 8.2 Operational capacity The coordinator of the project must have at least three years of experience in managing and implementing pan-european projects co-financed by the European Commission. This experience will be assessed exclusively on the basis of the information provided by the consortium in the specific relevant template, at application stage. Applicants must have the professional competencies as well as appropriate qualifications necessary to complete the proposed action. In this respect, applicants have to submit the following supporting documents: curriculum vitae (CV), preferably in European CV format or description of the profile of the main persons primarily responsible for managing and implementing the different activities of the action. The CV must be accompanied, where appropriate, (like in the field of research and education) by a list of relevant publications/projects managed); a summary table indicating the persons that will make up the core team responsible for the project with their qualifications and competences. A template is included in the application forms; the organisations activity reports or any other similar document; 16

17 a list of previous projects and activities performed and connected to the policy field of the call for proposals - or to the actions to be carried out in the last three (3) years; a list indicating at least three years of experience by the project coordinator in managing and implementing pan-european projects co-financed by the European Commission; a description of the technical equipment, tools or facilities and patents at the disposal of the applicant in relation to the proposal. 9. AWARD CRITERIA Eligible applications will be assessed on the basis of the following criteria: Criteria Relevance of the actions in view of the objectives of the call (meeting objectives of the call; appropriate results; appropriate partnership; competences and European dimension) Max. score 30 How relevant is the proposed action to the EU policies and priorities identified in the call? To what extent are the actions proposed by the applicant strategically chosen to meet the objectives of the call? Does the proposal seek to create innovative and sustainable tourism offers, which have excellent marketing potential, are attractive and interesting for travellers and operators? How well does the project fit with the expectations/needs of the identified target group (s)? How strategically chosen and relevant are the different project partners? Does the proposal involve the cooperation of more than 6 partners and more than 5 eligible countries? To what extent do the proposed activities, composition of the partnership and the selected target group(s) demonstrate a real transnational dimension and a true European added value? Is there any complementarity between the proposed project and other actions being taken at European level? Quality of the proposed actions (clear and feasible description of actions; appropriate allocation of resources; including management) 30 How practical and innovative are the activities proposed (including the internal plan of action/work packages)? How clear, coherent, and ambitious is the work plan? Has a realistic action plan been included? To what extent is the work plan clearly defined in terms of schedule, milestones and deliverables? 17

18 Is there a logical link between identified needs, specific objectives, proposed actions and expected results? Is this link well described and justified? How effective, appropriate and suitable is the contribution of each partner to the activities proposed? Is the level of effort (hours and budget) appropriate, per work package, per task and per partner considering their skills and responsibilities? To what extent can the methodology and management set up be effective and ensure the high quality of the action proposed? Impact on target audience (appropriate impact indicators; dissemination; project continuation) 20 Is the proposal suggesting clear, realistic and practical impact indicators? Is the project successful in exploiting synergies between tourism and CCIs, whilst creating a measurable impact in terms of entrepreneurship, growth and jobs (ex. development of SMEs, increasing tourism flows, job creation etc)? To what extent is the project likely to have a tangible impact on the target groups? How effective, innovative and convincing are the promotional and communication activities? Does the proposal contain a comprehensive communication strategy? Are the expected multiplying effects reasonable? To what extent does the project facilitate project continuity, with regard to the further development and promotion of the transnational tourism product and the partnership/ management set up after the end of the EU co-financing period? Are concrete and transferability measures (including lessons learnt and good practices) planned even for the medium to long term? Cost-effectiveness (coherence; detail and clarity between actions proposed and budgeted resources) 20 To what extent is the detailed budget coherent with the work plan of the proposal? To what extent is the budget clear and detailed, as well as effective, to implement the action? Does the breakdown of the budget, category by category, offer a way of ensuring that the amount of the grant awarded is reasonable in relation to the expected results? To what extent is the proposed expenditure necessary for the implementation of the project? Do the expected results stand in a reasonable relationship to the amount of the grant? Does the budget seem justified when compared to the expected impact? 18

19 TOTAL 100 In order to be considered for funding, proposals will need to have passed an overall threshold of 70% in terms of total score. In addition, thresholds of 50% will be applied to each individual award criterion described above in order to ensure a consistent minimum quality for all award criteria. Proposals will be ranked according to their total score. 10. LEGAL COMMITMENTS In the event of a grant awarded by EASME, a grant agreement drawn up in euro and detailing the conditions and level of funding, will be sent to the applicant, as well as the information on the procedure to formalise the agreement of the parties. Please note that the award of a grant does not establish an entitlement for subsequent years. The authorising officer may draw a reserve list of proposals that have passed the above thresholds. In the event that the original budget of the action is increased or that selected proposal(s) fail to conclude the grant agreement, a grant may be awarded to proposals from the reserve list, following their order on the ranking list in accordance with the scores obtained. 11. ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW PROCEDURES Unsuccessful applicants may request the review of the admissibility and eligibility procedure and the evaluation procedure with regard to their proposal as specified in section V of the Guide for applicants. 12. FINANCIAL PROVISIONS 12.1 General principles a) Non-cumulative award An action may only receive one grant from the EU budget. In no circumstances shall the same costs be financed twice by the Union budget. To ensure this, applicants shall indicate the sources and amounts of Union funding received or applied for the same action or part of the action or for its functioning during the same financial year as well as any other funding received or applied for the same action. 15 b) Non-retroactivity No grant may be awarded retrospectively for actions already completed. A grant may be awarded for an action which has already begun only where the applicant can demonstrate the need to start the action before the grant agreement is signed. 15 Directive 2014/24/EU of the European Parliament and the Council of 26 February 2014 on public procurement and repealing Directive 2004/18/EC (Official Journal of the European Union L 94, , p. 65). 19

20 In such cases, costs eligible for financing may not have been incurred prior to the date of submission of the grant application c) Co-financing Co-financing means that the resources which are necessary to carry out the action may not be entirely provided by the EU grant. It may take the form of: the beneficiary's own resources; income generated by the action; financial contributions from third parties. Co-financing may also take the form of in-kind contributions from third parties, i.e. nonfinancial resources made available free of charge by third parties to the beneficiary or to the consortium. The corresponding costs are not eligible. d) Balanced budget The estimated budget of the action is to be attached to the application form. It must have revenue and expenditure in balance. The budget must be drawn up in euros. Applicants which foresee that costs will not be incurred in euros, are invited to use the exchange rate published on the Info-euro website available at: e) Implementation contracts/subcontracting Where the implementation of the action requires the award of procurement contracts (implementation contracts), the beneficiary must award the contract to the bid offering best value for money or the lowest price (as appropriate), avoiding conflicts of interests and retain the documentation for the event of an audit. In the event of procurement exceeding EUR , the beneficiary must abide by special rules as referred in the grant agreement annexed to the call. Moreover the beneficiary is expected to clearly document the tendering procedure and retain the documentation for the event of an audit. Entities acting in their capacity of contracting authorities in the meaning of Directive 2014/24/EU 16 or contracting entities in the meaning of Directive 2014/25/EU 17 ) shall abide by the applicable national public procurement rules. The beneficiary is expected to clearly document the tendering procedure and retain the documentation for the event of an audit. Sub-contracting, i.e. the externalisation of specific tasks or activities which form part of the action as described in the proposal must satisfy the conditions applicable to any 16 Directive 2014/24/EU of the European Parliament and the Council of 26 February 2014 on public procurement and repealing Directive 2004/18/EC (Official Journal of the European Union L 94, , p. 65). 17 Directive 2014/25/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on procurement by entities operating in the water, energy, transport and postal services sectors and repealing Directive 2004/17/EC (Official Journal of the European Union L 94, , p. 243). 20

21 implementation contract (as specified above) and in addition to them the following conditions: - it may only cover the implementation of a limited part of the action; - it must be justified having regard to the nature of the action and what is necessary for its implementation; - it must be clearly stated in the proposal. Financial support to third parties. Applications may not envisage provision of financial support to third parties Funding forms Grants are calculated on the basis of a detailed estimated budget indicating clearly the costs that are eligible for EU funding. The grant amount may neither exceed the eligible costs nor the amount requested. Amounts are indicated in euros. Maximum EU contribution requested The EU contribution is limited to a maximum reimbursement rate of eligible costs indicated in section 4. Consequently, part of the total eligible expenses entered in the estimative budget must be financed from sources other than the EU grant (see section 12.1c). Eligible costs 'Eligible costs' shall meet all the following criteria: they are incurred by the beneficiary; they are incurred during the duration of the action, with the exception of costs relating to final reports and audit certificates; The period of eligibility of costs will start as specified in the grant agreement. If a beneficiary can demonstrate the need to start the action before the agreement is signed, expenditure may be authorised before the grant is awarded. Under no circumstances can the eligibility period start before the date of submission of the grant application (see section 12.1 b). they are indicated in the estimated budget of the action; they are necessary for the implementation of the action which is the subject of the grant; they are identifiable and verifiable, in particular being recorded in the accounting records of the beneficiary and determined according to the applicable accounting standards of the country where the beneficiary is established and according to the usual cost accounting practices of the beneficiary; they comply with the requirements of applicable tax and social legislation; they are reasonable, justified, and comply with the requirements of sound financial management, in particular regarding economy and efficiency. 21

22 The beneficiary's internal accounting and auditing procedures must permit direct reconciliation of the costs and revenue declared in respect of the action/project with the corresponding accounting statements and supporting documents. In addition for unit costs: the number of actual units must comply with the following conditions: the units must be actually used or produced during the duration of the action; the units must be necessary for implementing the action or produced by it, and the number of units must be identifiable and verifiable, in particular supported by records and documentation. Further details are included in the model grant agreement. Eligible direct costs The eligible direct costs for the action are those costs which, with due regard for the conditions of eligibility set out above, are identifiable as specific costs directly linked to the performance of the action and which can therefore be booked to it directly, such as : A. Direct personnel costs Types of eligible personnel costs A.1 Personnel costs are eligible if they are related to personnel working for the beneficiary under an employment contract (or equivalent appointing act) and assigned to the action ('costs for employees (or equivalent)'). They must be limited to salaries (including during parental leave), social security contributions, taxes and other costs included in the remuneration, if they arise from national law or the employment contract (or equivalent appointing act). They may also include additional remuneration for personnel assigned to the action (including payments on the basis of supplementary contracts regardless of their nature), if: (a) it is part of the beneficiary s usual remuneration practices and is paid in a consistent manner whenever the same kind of work or expertise is required; (b) the criteria used to calculate the supplementary payments are objective and generally applied by the beneficiary, regardless of the source of funding used. A.2 The costs for natural persons working under a direct contract with the beneficiary other than an employment contract or seconded by a third party against payment are eligible personnel costs, if: (a) the person works under conditions similar to those of an employee (in particular regarding the way the work is organised, the tasks that are performed and the premises where they are performed); (b) the result of the work carried out belongs to the beneficiary, and (c) the costs are not significantly different from those for personnel performing similar tasks under an employment contract with the beneficiary. The costs of the personnel of national administrations are eligible to the extent that they relate to the cost of activities which the relevant public authority would not carry out if the project concerned were not undertaken; 22